Simulation of Strong Wind Field by Non-hydrostatic Mesoscale Model and Its Applicability for Wind Hazard Assessment of Buildings and Houses
Takashi Maruyama1), Eriko Tomokiyo2) and Junji Maeda2)
1) Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University
2) Faculty of Human-Environment Studies, Kyushu University
(Received: December 4, 2009)
(Accepted for publication: March 30, 2010)
Abstract:
The strong wind field caused by Typhoon Songda, which passed through Kyushu in Japan in 2004, was simulated numerically. A non-hydrostatic mesoscale model was used for the numerical simulation. The simulated wind field was compared with the observed wind field in terms of wind speeds and directions, which were measured by the wind observation network, NeWMeK. It was found that the temporal variation of the calculated wind speeds at 1 km hori-zontal mesh grids correspond to the average of the observed wind speeds over a ten to fifteen minute time period. The temporal variation of the calculated wind directions showed good agreement with the observations. The maximum values of the calculated wind speeds were highly correlated to the maximum values of the observed wind speeds. The applicability of the mesoscale model for the wind hazard assessment of buildings was examined, and it was found that the maximum values of the calculated wind speeds at higher altitudes showed higher correlations with the rates of damaged houses caused by Typhoon Songda.